


Just Friends

by SunnyShark



Category: RWBY
Genre: Blind Date Goes Awry, F/M, JNPR - Freeform, Jaune is a great wingman, Roommates, There will be fluff, modern day AU, other characters mentioned or make cameos, sexual content in later chapters, shared past between Ren and Nora, there will be angst, there will be smut
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-19
Updated: 2020-07-21
Packaged: 2021-03-01 00:48:49
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 15,748
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23206513
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SunnyShark/pseuds/SunnyShark
Summary: Nora Valkyrie goes on a blind date in order to score a free dinner, dragging along her well-intentioned roommate for a double date. Things seem to be going well until she's greeted by someone from her past. Lie Ren was trying to avoid a double date his best friend begged him to join him on. He wasn't expecting Nora to be there, or the way seeing her would make him feel. It had been five years since they last saw each other and both of them were hiding things. Will they be able to reconnect? Will their friends be able to play cupid for them? Will Ren ever make Nora pancakes again?
Relationships: Jaune Arc/Pyrrha Nikos, Lie Ren/Nora Valkyrie
Comments: 39
Kudos: 48





	1. Duck Pics

“Left, left, left, right, left…” 

Nora Valkyrie scooped another spoonful of ice cream into her mouth as she swiped at her phone screen. She was currently in pajamas on the couch of her cozy apartment, curled up to a stuffed sloth, and enjoying Pumpkin Pete’s Peanut Butter Parfait straight from the carton.

The room she was in was a colorful hodgepodge of cozy chic and modern decor that reflected the personalities of its inhabitants. There was a buffet of accent pillows, succulent plants, and stuffed animals displayed about the room. By the front door was a small kitchenette with sunshine yellow cabinets that strained the eyes after extended viewing. Windows let in bright light on sunny days but also a fair amount of noise from the street below. The walls were decorated with a few shelves holding knick-knacks and some art prints. Overall, it was a pleasant space, though a bit cramped for two adult women to live in.

“You sound like a drill sergeant. What are you doing?” Pyrrha, roommate and best friend, asked as she came over to the couch to look over her friend’s shoulder.

“I’m on a dating app and let me tell you, it’s slim pickings."

Pyrrha walked around the couch, picking up the sloth plush and gently setting it on the coffee table before sitting down next to Nora. “It can’t be that bad,” She said, ever the optimist.

Nora didn’t bother to vocalize her response, just handed her the phone with a picture of a man with blue hair posing in an obviously staged shirtless photo with the caption, ‘Welcome to the gun show.’

Pyrrha handed the phone back with a grimace.

“See?” Nora asked smugly, but Pyrrha just rolled her eyes.

“Why are you even on that? You told me you weren’t interested in dating.”

With a groan, Nora leaned back on the couch. “I got fired from the call center for yelling at a customer and I need food,” She explained. Nora was terrible at keeping jobs longer than a few months. It wasn’t that she was bad at what she did so much as restless. That and she had the inability to keep herself from speaking her mind.

The response was a warm hug that Nora eagerly and happily absorbed.

“I’m sorry you lost your job. You don’t have to worry about rent until you’re back on your feet, okay?” Pyrrha said, knowing Nora was likely concerned.

“You know I can’t let you pay for everything, but thank you. I’ll get a new job as soon as possible and give you back pay."

“Only if you insist. I mean it, Nora. You’ve helped me out when it comes to paying for school. And that time I broke my ankle!" Pyrrha said, adamant.

“Blah, blah, blah… Let’s get back to ruthlessly judging guys based on shallow and vague profiles. What about this one?”

The profile was of an earnest looking blond with blue eyes smiling at the camera. The caption was ‘I swear I look better in person… I hope.’ Which had made Nora snort. Pyrrha looked at the picture with open interest, going so far as to take the phone from Nora for a better look.

“He seems… Sweet. According to his profile you have a lot in common, too. Why not this one?” She suggested as she gave the phone back.

Nora shrugged and went to the messaging service on the app, sending a quick ‘hello’ to the user. Within seconds there was a ding as she got a reply. “Whoa! That was fast… I dunno, that seems desperate,” She commented, looking at her phone as if it had become sentient.

“Nora!” Pyrrha huffed, knowing that her friend was trying to get out of her own plan and not having it. “Just see what he has to say."

“It better not be a dick pic,” Nora grumbled as she opened the app, nearly choking on her ice cream as whatever the guy had sent caused her to laugh.

“What?! What is it?!” Her friend asked, wrenching the phone away, a laugh bubbling out as well as she looked at the message.“Oh no… That’s so… Cute!” She giggled.

Nora was gasping for air. “Are you kidding me? It’s super cheesy!” She replied incredulously as she looked back at the picture the fellow had sent, and dissolved into another round of guffaws.

On her screen was an image of the blond running in terror from a very large and very angry goose. He’d followed it up with ‘Most guys send dick pics. I send duck pics.’

Finally finding a semblance of composure, Nora tapped furiously on the phone keyboard, reading her message aloud for her best friend’s benefit. “That is a goose. You’ve lost all credibility.”

Pyrrha was wiping a tear of mirth from her eye as she cuddled up to Nora’s side and looked at the screen with her, both women waiting with baited breath for his response.

“There were ducks there too! See those shaky blobs in the background? I assure you, those are ducks,” Came the reply and both girls snickered.

“I like him. He’s funny and cute,” Pyrrha said with encouragement.

“I’ll feel him out a bit and if I don’t get any red flags I’ll set up a date,” Nora replied.

Suddenly she got a look in her eyes that made Pyrrha’s blood run cold. It was the ‘Nora has an idea’ look and it was usually a very bad sign. Her friend slowly looked up at her as a slightly demented smile curled her lips. “We should double-date!” she sing-songed, like a child in a horror movie.

“What? No!” the more sensible of the two choked out, trying not to let her fear show. “This is about you getting dinner, right? Which, by the way, is a little wrong that you’re using romantic interest as an excuse to be fed,” She had to add.

“Oh, c’mon Pyrrha. Don’t you know there’s safety in numbers? I could show up to our date and he could be an axe-murderer or something!”

“I doubt he’d act on his murderous intent in a crowded coffee shop.”

“But what if he tries to get fresh with me!? I’m a fragile maiden!”

“Nora, just last week you sent a would-be mugger to the ER when you kneed him in the… Um… Groin area,” Her friend pointed out, tripping over the anatomy description.

“You can say ‘balls,’ Pyrrha,” Nora informed her. It was a bit funny that a champion Muay Thai fighter couldn’t use more vulgar terminology. "What if he knows kung-fu?! Kickboxing can’t compare to kung-fu!”

The taller redhead looked back at the picture of the man being chased by angry waterfowl and bit her lip. “I highly doubt that this guy knows kung-fu."

Nora took a deep breath and unleashed the strongest weapon in her arsenal; The puppy pout. She looked up at Pyrrha with big, watery, blue eyes and her lower lip quivered. 

“I’m nervous, Pyrrha… I’d feel so much better with you there,” She whimpered.

Her friend groaned and looked away, trying to be strong, but her eyes slid back to Nora’s sad expression and her resolve faltered. She inhaled deeply, trying to find the strength to deliver a dressing-down or proper refusal but then Nora sniffled and the battle was lost. “Fine,” She grumbled, knowing she’d been played like a fiddle.

Nora threw her arms up and cheered, kicking her feet for extra emphasis while Pyrrha sighed and crossed her arms over her chest. One day she hoped to become immune to her roommate’s manipulation, but it didn’t feel like it would be anytime soon.

Noticing the sigh, the shorter woman calmed down and nudged Pyrrha’s arm with her elbow. “Oh, c’mon! It won’t be that bad! If it stinks we just eat and then say our periods synchronized or something… You know you could use a free dinner too. Those school bills are piling up.”

Nora knew she had a point. While she understood Pyrrha didn’t feel right using a man’s romantic interest as a means of getting a meal, she was sure her friend was having trouble making ends meet. Her best friend was in school to become a physical trainer and rehabilitation specialist and on the side she did work as a masseuse and muay thai instructor. Neither paid as much as Nora knew she would’ve liked and she was barely getting by. Being treated for dinner probably didn’t seem like much, but it was one less bill to pay and it wasn’t like Pyrrha was going in with the intention to reject advances.

Nora had less moral scruples the hungrier and sadder she got. Seeing as she’d just lost her job and the fridge was empty, she was running low on integrity. She started texting the blond some more and occasionally laughed at something he’d typed.

After a while, things seemed to be set and she grinned at her friend. “He’s totally cool with a double date and offered to meet at a bar where his friend works. I know the place, it’s pretty swanky.” Her eyebrows wiggled suggestively and Pyrrha laughed at her antics.

“Is the working friend my date?” The tall redhead asked, to which Nora nodded.

“The guy is a bartender to pay his way through school. He’s studying to become a shrink so you should have fun talking about weirdo mental stuff.”

“I have plenty of stories of weirdo mental stuff when it comes to my favorite roommate.”

“I’ve never claimed to be sane,” Nora defended with a helpless shrug and smirk. “The guy I’m seeing, Jaune, says that his friend is cute too! Gotta appreciate a dude that is comfortable evaluating the aesthetics of other dudes.”

“When are we meeting up?”

“On Friday, six o’clock at the bar. We’ve got plenty of time to pick out what we’re gonna wear and work up a proper appetite,” Nora informed her friend happily. Friday was two days away and since she didn’t have a job and wasn’t going to school, it meant she’d have time for other things. Things like her super secret project.

“Nothing too revealing,” Pyrrha warned, knowing Nora would most likely raid her closet and find her an outfit, sparing her the trouble. It wasn’t that Pyrrha disliked dressing up, it was simply that her idea of fashion wasn’t quite as daring or colorful as Nora’s.

“I make no promises. You’ve got a rocking body and you need to show it off more.”

With a pout at her friend that told her exactly what she thought of showing off her ‘rocking body’ she returned to the kitchen to prepare a woeful excuse for a meal out of limp lettuce, squishy tomatoes, and a possibly expired squirt of thousand island dressing.

Nora resumed consuming her ice cream.

____________________________________________________________________________

The days passed quickly and on the night of the double date Nora was not willing to compromise. She’d gone out of her way to find both herself and Pyrrha suitable and sexy outfits, but her friend had a few hang ups.

They were in Nora’s bedroom, an explosion of pink and white decor that seemed more suited to a little girl that wanted to grow up to be a princess, if not for the training weights in the corner. The walls were a powder pink with white trim that held a mirror and a few posters of cute animals. Against a wall was a plush bed covered in assorted garments and a fuzzy white comforter and a plethora of pillows. The ceiling had a cloud-shaped lighting fixture that cast light on the room. The duo were stationed at the walk-in closet adjacent to Nora’s bathroom door.

“This shows my belly button!” Pyrrha yelped, trying to tug down her top. “And there are no straps!” She added as the top slid down too far past her collarbone for her comfort.

“We’re going to layer it! Don’t worry, that’s just the undershirt!” Nora told her, yanking the black tube top back in place and handing Pyrrha a corset-vest combo in a pretty bronze color. “Put this on and relax!”

Doing as instructed, the nervous woman had to admit that the combination worked with the red wrap skirt that hugged her hips and the bronze gladiator sandals on her feet. “But it’s going to be cold,” She attempted as one last protest.

The look Nora gave her could’ve frozen lava and Pyrrha wisely decided to give up the fight.

“What are you going to wear?” She finally asked to break the awkward silence as well as to hint that Nora needed to be wearing more than just her bra and panties.

The hyperactive spitfire grinned and bounced into her closet. “I was hoping you’d ask that… I had something in mind but I’m worried it’s too… Tame.” The words came as a disembodied voice from the depths of the closet.

“But tame isn’t bad…” Pyrrha tried to say but was cut off by a loud scoff.

“You don’t go tame when you want a free dinner!”

Without giving her friend time to reply, Nora popped out of the closet wearing her chosen outfit. It was a cute pleated pink skirt with a white tank-top tucked in at the waist. She had a pair of pink and white sneaker-boots on her feet and a grin that could light up a room. “Well?”

Pyrrha looked at the outfit with a critical eye before realizing what the look needed. Without warning, she stood from the bed she was sitting on and brushed past Nora to brave the wilds of her closet, coming back with a navy bolero jacket that she handed over.

“Ooh, I like it! Smart!” Nora commented as she pulled the jacket on and went about posing in several different positions in front of her full length mirror. “Yep! Gonna have full bellies tonight!” She chirped.

They went to their separate bathrooms to add makeup and other final touches to their looks before meeting at the front door.

“Phone?” Pyrrha asked.

“Check!” Nora replied.

“Wallet?”

“Check!”

“Keys?”

“Check!”

“Okay, let’s get this over with,” The taller redhead sighed, glad that their checklist went without any hiccups. Usually Nora forgot one of the three on her way out and Pyrrha had to rescue her.

“I think you mean, ‘let’s get this show on the road!’” Nora cheered, pumping her fist and marching through the door with Pyrrha in tow.

____________________________________________________________________________

Jaune Arc was nervous. He had arrived at the bar early to meet his date and her friend, so here he was, agonizing over every detail from where to sit to if he should buy an appetizer for the table. His best friend, Lie Ren, had assured him that everything would be fine, but Jaune was not as optimistic.

The bar he’d suggested was a local favorite. It had wood-trimmed walls, comfortable booths, and intimate lighting. The booths had all been taken, but Jaune was fine with a table and hoped his date would be as well. Large windows looked out over the street, but he had his back to them, knowing his nerves might make him bolt. He wasn’t a coward, but he also wasn’t the best with romance. He’d only just gotten over an unrequited crush on the campus ice-queen, but he was ready to try again.

Looking at the corsage he’d bought lying on the table and contemplated dumping it in the trash. Just as he reached for the offending flower arrangement, he heard the door jingle as two beautiful women walked in. One of them matched the profile picture of his date and he realized time had run out. He shrank back in his chair and tried to look cool, picking up the menu and pretending to look over it with interest.

It was upside down.

He didn’t notice.

Nora cleared her throat as they approached the table and smiled brightly at the blonde as he looked up at her and faked surprise. 

“Jaune?” The boy smiled and nodded in response. “Hi! I’m Nora,” She introduced, waiting for him to stand up before swooping in for a bear hug that squeezed the air out of him.

When she finally pulled back and let him breathe, Nora gestured at Pyrrha as if the girl was a game show prize. “And this is Pyrrha!”

Pyrrha smiled softly and gave a shy wave. “Hello,” She greeted, walking over to sit in the chair next to where she assumed Nora would sit. “Oh, he got you flowers!” She cooed, seeing the corsage.

Jaune sat back down and sank in his chair as Nora spotted the arrangement. “Awww, is that a wrist corsage?” She asked, making him sink a little lower. “I haven’t worn one of those since my first school dance!”

“Happy to offer a little nostalgia,” Jaune mumbled as his cheeks burned bright red.

Pyrrha sensed his discomfort and sprang to his rescue. “I think it’s fun and unique!” She announced, watching closely as Nora picked up the corsage and slipped it onto her wrist. She pulled her arm up near her face and sniffed the pretty white flowers. Giving a nod of satisfaction, she sat down across from Jaune and beamed at him.

“It actually is a pretty cool move. You get points for creativity. Now wow me!”

Next to her, Pyrrha slapped a palm to her forehead in exasperation toward her friend’s directness.

____________________________________________________________________________

Awkward ice-breaker aside, the date was going fairly well between Nora and Jaune. They were both fairly bright and fun people with several things in common. They talked enthusiastically through their dinner and lingered over drinks and dessert.

Pyrrha was happy for her best friend, but couldn’t help the stab of disappointment that her own date was missing in action. Playing the part of third wheel was beyond awkward, especially when it seemed that the potential lovebirds had forgotten she was even there. Earlier, Jaune had assured her that her date was coming, he simply got caught up doing inventory work at the bar.

She took another sip from her third soda of the night and people watched, trying not to pull her phone back out for the hundredth time. The boredom was getting to her and while she was quite possibly the most polite person on Earth, she had her limits.

Her attention was drawn to Nora as she erupted into a fit of giggles, but was redirected by movement just beyond.

A handsome Asian man was frozen in place, staring at Nora as if she were a ghost.

Immediately feeling concerned, but not wanting to disrupt the date over nothing, she kept an eye on the man, but he didn’t move. He barely took the time to blink and the shock on his face was very real.

“Um… Nora?”

“One sec, Pyrrha, Jaune was just telling me how his sisters dressed him up as a kid,” Nora replied with laughter lacing her tone.

“Nora…”

“Yeah, hang on.”

“Nora!”

Jaune noticed the urgency in Pyrrha’s tone and paused in his story. “Y’know, I can finish the story after… Everything okay?” He asked kindly and Pyrrha inwardly imagined kissing him in a fit of gratitude.

“Um… Nora, don’t look, but there’s a guy just… Staring at you. Openly. He’s been watching you for five minutes,” Pyrrha explained.

Nora immediately acted against instructions and looked directly where Pyrrha had told her not to, curiosity stronger than self-preservation in the moment.

Both her friend and her date watched her as the color drained from her face and Nora’s bright blue eyes went wide. She slowly and clumsily got out of her chair, holding the table for balance.

“Oh my God,” She whispered.

The hapless bystanders looked at each other as if an explanation were available, then back to Nora, as she seemed to come back to herself, her whole body tensing.

“REEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEN!!!” She screamed before launching toward her admirer at full speed. The whole bar was alerted to the scene as she jumped and crashed into the man’s chest, knocking both of them to the ground.

Ren’s arms wrapped around Nora as they fell and he landed on his back, protectively curling around her upon impact. Once the daze of the landing wore off, he blinked up at her as she hovered over him, beaming brightly even as tears dripped from her eyes down her cheeks.

“Nora…” He gasped with disbelief.

____________________________________________________________________________

Earlier in the night, Lie Ren was cursing himself for his cowardice. His best friend was depending on him to show up to a blind double-date, but he’d made the weak excuse that he needed to do inventory for the bar and here he was, hiding in the storeroom. To his credit he was doing inventory, just slowly and meticulously in order to draw out as much time as he could.

He felt guilty for not going out, but the date had been pushed on him at the last moment and he hadn’t been able to come up with an excuse to get out of it on the fly. Jaune was counting on him, but Ren felt trapped.

The aspiring psychologist didn’t want to examine just why he was so against a simple date, but deep down he already knew the reason. In the past he’d debated on giving his heart away and it hadn’t worked out. The pain still haunted him and kept him from moving on.

Ren had been on a few dates, but they were superficial at best and he never called the next morning. He mostly went on them to scratch the itch and get Jaune off his back. Luckily, school and work kept him relentlessly busy so he wasn’t forced to venture out of his comfort zone often.

The phone in his pocket vibrated and he sighed to himself, knowing it was past time to face the music. He fished the device out and looked at the screen to read, “Dude, where are you?! Your date is here and she’s gorgeous and smart and funny and Nora is great and all but I need you to get her friend out of here because I can’t stop sneaking glances at her!”

Ren’s blood turned to ice as he read and reread the name of Jaune’s date. There was no way. It was impossible! But the lead weight in his gut told him otherwise.

He had to know.

And so the usually calm and collected Lie Ren, stoic mystery man of his time, spilled out of the back room and rushed into the main dining area as fast as his composure would allow.

A familiar laugh rang through the air, and he froze as his eyes landed on the source.

She was as pretty as he remembered. Her figure had rounded out and she’d changed her hair, but there was no doubt that the woman he was looking at was Nora Valkyrie.

Nora was looking at Jaune affectionately and Ren’s hands fisted at his sides. So many feelings rushed through him that it left him paralyzed. Shock, hurt, joy, confusion… A cacophony of thoughts and feelings overwhelmed his brain.

Then she turned her head and it was like looking at the present layered over the past. She had the same unfiltered smile and big blue eyes. His heart beat double-time in his chest and he watched her as she got to her feet, opened her mouth, and called his name.

Then Nora was running to him.

He caught her.

____________________________________________________________________________

“It’s you! It’s really you! It is you, right?” Nora examined Ren’s face through tears, taking note of the streak in his hair, his pale pink eyes, and the exasperated half smile on his face. “It is you!” She cheered, hugging him again.

“Uh… Nora, we’re in the middle of a bar,” The male reminded her as he helped her sit up before following suit. He looked over her, both to make sure she hadn’t hurt herself in the fall and to assure himself that it really was Nora he was seeing.

“Huh?” She asked before registering that the entirety of the restaurant was staring with mixed expressions of interest. Blushing, she got to her feet and helped Ren up before waving her hands as if trying to shoo away a cloud of fog. “Nothing to see here, folks! Just two old friends reuniting after five years of no contact!”

Ren took hold of her wrist and pulled her to the table where Jaune and Pyrrha sat, still slack-jawed after the display. “Please resume your evening’s activities. Everything is fine,” He told the onlookers as they moved, embarrassment in his tone.

They reached the table and Ren pulled out Nora’s chair for her. She sat, her eyes still locked with his, and they seemed to have a silent conversation before he went to the other side of the table and sat across from Pyrrha.

“So… That was interesting,” Jaune commented, trying to dispel the tension in the air. “I didn’t know you guys knew each other. Was that whole thing about the five years true?” He asked.

Nora looked at her lap and shifted uncomfortably while Pyrrha placed a hand on her friend’s shoulder and stepped in. “It’s a long story, from what I’ve been told."

Ren was watching Nora with naked interest, as if she’d disappear again if he blinked. “Where have you been?” He finally blurted out, seeming surprised to hear his own voice.

The petite redhead looked at him and bit her lip. Her earlier jubilation seemed to have melted into apprehension. “It really is a long story. I’m okay. I’ve been okay…”

Pyrrha scowled but kept her mouth shut.

Jaune looked at his three tablemates and huffed, crossing his arms over his chest. “I’m really not liking being left out of the loop, here. Ren just essentially stole my date so I’d like to think I can have at least some kind of explanation,” He pouted.

“I need some air!” Nora announced, shooting up from her seat and quickly walking to the front doors and out onto the sidewalk. Ren wasn’t far behind her, not even bothering with excusing himself. Jaune and Pyrrha watched them go in mixed stages of surprise and shock.

Ren caught up to Nora at the end of the block, gripping her by the shoulders before she could walk out into traffic. She was obviously distracted and upset and his heart ached to see it.

She’d gone a block from the bar and stood in front of a closed down bridal shop with a naked mannequin posing in the window. The sidewalk was busy with people coming and going, hunkered down on themselves in the chill wind. She didn’t even seem to register the cold, though she was shivering, and he felt bad he wasn’t wearing a jacket to offer her.

“Nora, what’s going on? If you don’t want to talk about the past, I’ll respect it but just… Don’t run away. Not again,” He pleaded. He meant what he said. Seeing her again had been unexpected but not unwelcome and he was set to do anything to keep her near.

Nora turned around in his grip and looked up at him with earnest longing. “You promise you won’t ask?” She asked him, pleading in her voice. 

As much as he wanted answers, Ren wanted Nora to stick around more. He simply nodded and pulled her to his chest to hug her. “I promise,” He finally said, still holding her tightly as pedestrians streamed around them.

She hugged him back, nuzzling her face against his chest.

“Get a room!” Somebody shouted as they bumped into the hugging duo, making Ren come back to his senses and pull away a bit.

“We should head back. The others might be worried,” He said, still watching his companion closely.

Nora nodded and looped her arm in his, her earlier melancholy somewhat abated. “You never told Jaune about me?” She asked, a small trickle of hurt flowing through her tone.

Ren was quiet for a long time as they walked, their pace slow but steady. Finally, he looked at her and then away. “It was too difficult… To talk about,” He stated, giving the impression he didn’t wish to speak further on the matter.

After having asked him not to pry, he knew Nora knew better than to push.

The two of them walked in silence while they both were buzzing with unanswered questions. It was a relief to get back to the bar and their friends.

____________________________________________________________________________

While Ren and Nora were out on the sidewalk, Pyrrha and Jaune were left to their own devices to wait and wonder.

“So… That was a bit rude," Pyrrha said after a long silence, looking at Jaune with strong judgement.

He’d been sitting in his seat, scowling at the table, but at her censure the facade crumbled and he dug his fingers in his hair and sank to rest his chin on the table. “I know, I feel like a total jerk,” He confessed.

She wanted to stay mad at him, but it was obvious he loathed himself enough for the both of them. She reached out and patted the back of his head, trying to comfort him. “There, there,” She offered awkwardly.

“I just… I really was hoping to meet someone who didn’t think I was a total loser and Nora seemed really sweet. Then I find out that not only does she have a past with my best friend, he never told me about it! I thought we were bros and whatever is going on between those two is obviously deep."

Pyrrha made a noncommittal sound as she wondered if she should let him know she didn’t think he was a loser.

“We’ve been friends for a few years and he knows my life story but I feel like I barely know anything about him!” Jaune complained before taking a long sip of water from his glass. “Ren’s so cool and mysterious and I’m just… Me.”

Unable to listen to him pout, Pyrrha cleared her throat softly. “I think you’re being too hard on yourself. Some things can be… Difficult… To discuss. I only know the story because Nora is talkative when she’s drunk. She didn’t even mean to tell me, and we’re like sisters” She revealed delicately.

He looked up at her with shining eyes filled with hope. “Can you tell me what happened?” He asked.

She shook her head and wrung her hands in her lap. “It’s not my story to tell.”

Jaune sighed, but nodded.

Wanting to be helpful, Pyrrha gave a timid smile and said, “Maybe he’ll be more open to discussion now that he’s been freshly reminded of the past. He might need advice or someone to listen.”

“You’re so smart,” Jaune murmured before his eyes went wide and he rambled to cover his slip. “About these things. Friendship! You’re a good friend. Nora is lucky.”

She blushed brightly at his flub, but giggled when he tried to remedy things. He really was cute to her and she wondered if there was a way they could see each other again. An idea came to her and she pulled out her phone. “Can I have your number? So that you can let me know how Ren is, I mean. I haven’t met him before now but he’s important to Nora and I know she’d want someone looking out for him.” The words were easier to say since they weren’t technically a lie.

“Oh, uh, sure,” He told her, getting out his own cell phone and trading numbers with her. A tiny bit of pink tinted his cheeks as he realized he was getting the number of possibly the prettiest and nicest woman he’d ever met.

Looking up, Pyrrha signaled him to put his phone back. “They’re back. Act casual,” She hissed, smiling up at the returning duo.

Both Nora and Ren looked uncomfortable as they took their seats again.

Jaune leaned forward and cleared his throat. “Hey, I’m sorry about how I acted. That wasn’t cool.”

“It’s fine," Nora said, her smile forced. She looked at Pyrrha and her best friend saw the intense need to flee in her eyes.

“I just remembered! We have an… Uh… Thing! That we need to do and… Go, now,” Pyrrha tried to make an excuse to leave but fumbled over her words.

Ren looked upset and called out “Wait!” Stopping Nora from getting up.

“Can I have your number?” He asked Nora.

She nodded dumbly and pulled out her phone for him. He put his number in her contacts and added her to his own before giving her phone back. His manner was much more relaxed and he managed a weak smile at her.

“It was good to see you, Nora,” He told her, his words weighed down with deeper meaning.

“You too, Ren,” She replied, her eyes fixed on his.

“So, we’ll be in touch!” Pyrrha chirped, looping an arm in Nora’s and waving at the two men before steering the way out of the restaurant.

A few blocks down, she stopped and checked on her best friend. “Are you okay?” She asked, knowing it was a stupid question but needing to hear Nora’s response. She watched as Nora seemed to come out of a daze and nodded slowly.

“Yeah, I’m okay. Just kind of knocked for a loop. I never thought I’d see him again. I mean I know we live in the same city and all but we ran in pretty different circles after I left,” She explained with a twinge of sadness.

Pyrrha wrapped an arm around Nora’s shoulders and squeezed her. “This is a good thing. You can tell him what happened and get some closure.”

A flash of panic showed in Nora’s face as she paled a bit. “Are you kidding me? I can’t tell him what happened. It would crush him!”

“Nora!” Pyrrha gasped, exasperated by the fierce show of loyalty and protection but not surprised. “He’s a grown man. He deserves to know what went on and why you left. Anyone could see that he’s desperate for answers.” She didn’t add that Ren also looked at Nora like she hung the moon. Best to let them figure that out on their own.

“I left without telling him so that he could have a better life and he has. If I fill him in now it will just add unneeded drama. It’s fine.”

“Nora,” Pyrrha pleaded, wanting her friend to see reason.

“Drop it,” Nora snapped in a tone that said the conversation was over. Pyrrha watched her start walking back toward their apartment and jogged to catch up.

“I just hope you know what you’re doing.”

____________________________________________________________________________

“Have you called her?” Jaune asked Ren.

It had been a day since the strange date turned reunion and Ren was over at Jaune’s apartment for guy time. They had a ritual of meeting up at least once a week for beer and hanging out. They’d been in campus housing together as roommates and quickly hit it off despite their differences. When they each moved into their own space, they vowed to stay in touch and had honored the promise.

Ren had been regularly pulling out his phone to look at it in deep contemplation before stowing it back in his pocket. Jaune had watched him do it three times before finally saying something.

“Texted?” He asked.

Ren shook his head and Jaune huffed in frustration. “You’ve got to be the one to contact her! Girls like a guy who takes initiative, or so I’ve heard.”

“From who?” Ren asked, curious.

Jaune blushed and spluttered a bit before spitting out, “It doesn’t matter, just reach out to her!”

Ren frowned, pressing his lips into a tight line. Then he pulled out his phone and checked it again while Jaune groaned loudly.

“Dude!” He barked, stomping his foot as Ren stowed the device away again, looking grim.

Ren’s posture grew defensive and he crossed his arms over his chest. “Nora was always the one to start conversations. She knows I’m not… Socially inclined.”

“That’s putting it lightly. It took a week before you said more than two words to me in school,” His best friend muttered darkly.

“See?” Ren asked, trying to illustrate his point.

Jaune wasn’t sure how to broach the subject again, but he knew Ren needed a push. “Look, I only know Nora from a few text conversations and a bad date, but it was obvious that something big happened between you two. It’s also obvious that whatever it was is bothering you both. Maybe you need to reassure her that you’re not gonna pry. Maybe you need to just go for broke and ask. All I know is, you have to be the one to do it if you want something to happen.”

“How do you know that?”

“I have seven sisters. I’m not exactly an expert in girl stuff but I can at least guess when one is upset and how she’ll act about it. When a boisterous girl like Nora gets quiet it means she’s retreating.”

A panic swelled up in Ren as he thought back to the way things used to be. It was true that Nora was vibrant and tended to face her problems head on but the deeper wounds made her draw within herself. She never talked at length about her past and when she was pressed for details, she got quiet or changed the subject. It was always that way with the things that made Nora feel vulnerable.

So whatever went down after she left had done a number on her. And he hadn’t been there for her. His fist clenched at his side and he grit his teeth as a fresh wave of guilt washed over him. He hated to admit it, but Jaune had a point.

It also brought up a whole new slew of worries.

“What do I say?” He asked, his tone pleading.

“Most people start with ‘Hi,’ and go from there,” The blond told him while trying not to smile. Seeing Ren off of his game was a bit gratifying for him. It was a rare occurrence worth relishing. He took mercy on the man and tried to throw him a bone.

“Think about stuff she likes and invite her to do something you know she’d be interested in,” he suggested.

Ren seemed to contemplate this and nodded slowly to himself. “I can invite her to the zoo. I know she enjoys animals.”

“Wasn’t there a thing on the radio about how they opened up a new sloth enclosure? Does she like sloths?”

A smile lit Ren’s face as he thought of a fond memory. “She loves them and insists they make sounds.”

“Do they?”

“I have no idea.”

____________________________________________________________________________


	2. Pocket Birdseed

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ren and Nora have a reunion at the zoo.

“Do you believe in destiny?”

Pyrrha looked at the question she’d just typed into her text box and outwardly cringed. She’d been texting back and forth with Jaune since she’d met him the day before and they’d really hit it off. Maybe not to the point of discussing existentialism, she decided as she deleted the words and started over with, “What’s your favorite ice cream flavor?”

Feeling much better about her choice, she hit ‘send’ just as her bedroom door flew open and her roommate flung herself onto Pyrrha’s bed. Nora looked on the verge of panic, so Pyrrha tucked her phone away to give all her attention to her distressed friend.

Normally, she’d yell at Nora for not knocking, but seeing the expression on her face made Pyrrha pause. Plus, she hadn’t technically broken a rule. Nora was awful at remembering to knock, and now only hesitated at the door if Pyrrha put a sock on the handle. Having her roommate walk in on her while she was having ‘private time’ was not an experience either of them wanted to repeat.

“He texted me!” Nora wailed.

It took Pyrrha a second to catch up to Nora’s train of thought, but it got to the station eventually. “Ren did? That’s great!” She replied.

Nora bit her lip and it was obvious she had thoughts on the matter. “He invited me to the zoo to ‘catch up’ after all these years.”

“That doesn’t mean he wants to push you about the past. Maybe he just wants to reconnect. You two used to be super close before-,”

Nora cut her off with a loud sigh. “I mean, I know you’re right but I just can’t help but be freaked out. This is REN… The boy I’ve been in love with since I was ten. What if he knows and he’s going to be all kind and perfect and then crush my heart into jagged little bits by saying he never liked me, he’s glad I left, and he never wants to see me again?!”

“I really don’t think Ren seemed like the kind of guy to do that. Plus, wouldn’t it just be better to never contact you in the first place? You’re overthinking again,” Pyrrha pointed out, ever the voice of reason.

“He’s not,” Agreed Nora, though she didn’t look pleased by it. “I just… The way things were before I left and the way I left… I know he has questions. I’m just not sure I can answer them. I don’t want him to hate me, but I also don’t want to hurt him.”

“I still think you should tell him the truth. It’ll eat you up if you don’t. Keeping secrets, especially as big as yours, isn’t good for a relationship.”

“We’re just friends. We’ve only ever been friends. Pretty sure if it was left hanging on him, we’d only ever be friends,” Nora stated bitterly.

“You loved being his friend.”

With a grunt, Nora pulled Pyrrha’s duvet up over her head and hid in the fabric. “Stop being right,” She hissed from her blanket fort.

Rolling her eyes, Pyrrha fished out her phone to see if Jaune had replied. When Nora got pouty it was best to give her precious time to work out the extra-sticky things on her own. She would stand by and offer support if Nora asked, but for the time being she just let herself get wrapped up in her text conversation with a cute blond guy she was fairly certain had no clue she was flirting with him.

Finally, Nora poked her head out of her shell, like a turtle looking for food, and saw Pyrrha smiling at her phone. “I know that look,” She told her friend.

“What look?”

“The one that says you’ve got a crush,” Nora explained with a cheshire grin. “Who are you talking to?”

“That’s… It’s not a crush! We’re friends and… Okay, I like him. But he is clueless!” Pyrrha gave in easily and Nora pounced as expected.

“Oh my gosh! Pyrrha! My baby is growing up and falling in love!” She shrieked jubilantly.

“I’m older than you,” Pyrrha stated sullenly, but Nora didn’t hear or wasn’t paying attention.

“I’m going to be the best maid of honor ever! You’re okay with a male stipper at your bachelorette party, right? Who am I kidding, you deserve a whole club full of them! Just a ton of hunky muscled guys gyrating around you to sexy music and-.”

She was cut off by spluttering and laughing from the assumed bride-to-be. “We’re not even dating! Slow down, Nora!” It took her a moment before she quietly added, “And no strippers.”

“So, who’s the lucky guy?”

Pyrrha suddenly realized her crush might be awkward for Nora. She knew the other woman hadn’t been seriously interested in a romance, and that if she were it was probably only with Ren, but Nora and Jaune had hit it off. What if she felt something for him too? What if Pyrrha was getting in the way?

“Now you’re overthinking,” Nora said, rolling onto her back and looking up.

Taking a fortifying gulp, Pyrrha blurted out, “It’s Jaune,” and winced as she waited for the fallout.

Nora’s jaw dropped and she let out an incredulous, “Really? But he’s such a dork.”

“I find him refreshing and charming. Every guy I meet is threatened by me because of my skills, my looks, or my family. He doesn’t seem to care that I could best him in a fight, or that I’m tall and I like to wear heels. He just… He’s sweet and he treated me like I was just another person.”

Nodding along, Nora smiled when Pyrrha finished talking. “I say go for it! He is cute, though I tend to prefer more broody types. He’d better treat you right, though, or I’ll kick his ass.”

Pyrrha laughed and play-kicked Nora, who dramatically flailed and fell off the bed, making her laugh more. The two giggled as Nora climbed back on the bed and sat cross-legged in front of her.

Suddenly, the shorter redhead turned serious. “I’m pretty freaked out, Pyrrha. I love Ren, I always have, and losing him again…” Her eyes started to tear up and Pyrrha pulled her into a bear hug.

“Oh man, a Pyrrha hug. I must be extra pathetic to be getting physical affection from you.”

“Do you want me to stop?”

“Hell no!” Nora hugged her back and let her friend comfort her.

____________________________________________________________________________

“Why did I let you talk me into this?” Ren demanded as he paced the floor. He’d sent Nora a text inviting her to the zoo, but hadn’t heard back yet. It had been three hours and his nerves were fraying. “I need tea. Calming jasmine tea,” He told himself as he went to the kitchenette and started filling his kettle with water.

Jaune looked back at him from the couch and laughed. “Dude, you’ve gotta relax.”

“How can I relax when she hasn’t texted back? Shouldn’t she answer promptly? That’s basic text etiquette, isn’t it? Not even an emoji in reply.”

“She probably hasn’t even seen it yet, or she’s trying to figure out how to answer, or any number of things. Man, you’ve gotta chill. I’ve never seen you so worked up. It’s weird.”

Ren took a deep breath to center himself and put the kettle on a burner. “Yes, of course. That makes sense.” He admitted, closing his eyes as he took another cleansing breath.

“You really like her, don’t you?” Jaune asked, trying not to let just how curious he was show.

“Nora and I have been through almost everything together. She was my family for a long time and I had thought… Nevermind, it doesn’t matter.”

Disappointment wracked Jaune as Ren clammed up and he gave a small push to keep him from shutting him out completely. “Talk to me, Ren. What’s up?”

The kettle began to whistle and Ren grabbed a potholder before lifting it to a tea cozy in the shape of a lotus. He was silent as he prepped a teacup with loose tea leaves in a strainer and poured the boiling water over the mixture. As it steeped, he turned around and Jaune saw how tired his best friend looked.

Ren’s shoulders slumped and he looked at the floor, collecting himself before he began to speak.

____________________________________________________________________________

Nine-year-old Lie Ren had been watching the storm from his bedroom window, a favorite pastime of his, when he noticed a wall of dark clouds clustering in the distance. “Mother, what’s that?” He asked, pointing through the pane out at the darkening sky. She came over to look and hummed in disapproval.

The Ren household was an affluent family situated in a higher-end neighborhood in the town of Kuroyuri. Li Ren was a fire and rescue worker that was often away from home due to his career. An Ren was a third-generation CEO of Lotus Holdings who spent her weekends avoiding phone calls in favor of her higher calling as a mother. Their son, Lie, was a stellar student who enjoyed learning, dancing, and Tai chi. They were a happy and prestigious family that had strong bonds and honorable morals. They’d lived in their luxurious home since Lie had been born.

A high-pitched whine pierced through his skull and his mother gasped from where she’d been standing, the basket of folded clothes in her hands hitting the floor as she raced to gather him up in her arms. “Why are the sirens going off?” He asked, starting to get anxious.

“They’re probably testing them,” An told him. Though in her heart, she wasn’t so sure that was the case. It was storm season and the tests usually only took place in the off-season with a warning to the community beforehand.

Her unease became founded as the light outside went from day to nightfall. Tapping came from the window as pebbles struck the side of the house. From outside, the wind could be heard whipping up and the occasional crack as trees were torn asunder. An hurried to Ren’s tiny bedroom closet and flung open the door, setting her son on the floor and gently pushing him toward the corner.

The house felt like it was shaking and the noise was deafening. “Mother?” He’d asked, wanting her to explain, but not knowing how to ask. She’d looked at the closet and saw there wasn’t enough room for the both of them. He saw the fear and sorrow in her eyes, even as she tried to smile and look calm.

“I love you, little Lie,” She’d told him before she slammed the door shut. He thought he heard the sound of something being dragged in front of the door, and when he tried to open it to follow her, he found it to be jammed shut. Panic overwhelmed him and the sounds of his screams tangled with that of what he could only imagine was the end of the world.

“Mother?! Mother?! MOMMY!!!” He sobbed, banging his fists on the door until somehow the sounds became explosions outside. He fell back and curled up in the corner of the tiny closet, under a clothes rack, the garments on the hangers tumbling down on him. The ungodly noises seemed to go on forever as he cried out for his mother, praying she was fine and he was just having a nightmare.

Then everything grew eerily silent and still. He shivered under the blanket of clothes piled on him and didn’t dare to peek for as long as he could, too scared of what he would see. Finally, his curiosity couldn’t be denied any further, and he climbed over to the door, and was able to push it open.

Utter bedlam greeted him as he looked at the battered ruins of his home. A large chunk of the roof had been ripped off and the elements had blasted down on his room. The farthest of the four walls had crumbled and a random assortment of junk was strewn haphazardly in the wreckage.

“Mother?” He’d asked, his voice barely above a whisper and yet sounding like a shout in the dead air.

The sound of sirens tore through the air as Ren stumbled through refuse and rubble, getting filthy in the process. His tears left trails in the dirt on his face and his steps were uncertain as he strode over uneven ground. “Mother…” He sniffled, wiping his eyes with a torn sleeve. He didn’t know how long he walked. Nothing looked familiar in the aftermath. All he knew was he was tired, scared, and lost.

“Son!” Called an adult male voice as a man raced toward him.

“Father!” Ren cried, tripping his way into his father’s arms and sobbing against his shirt. He tried to speak, but his throat was clogged from the plethora of emotions overwhelming him. His father was wearing his uniform and the large padded coat fell around Ren’s shoulders as his father covered him up with it.

“There, there… Be calm, son. There will be time for tears when this is over. For right now, we must be strong for those that need us,” His father told him, wiping Ren’s cheeks with his thumbs.

The little boy nodded and sniffled, fighting a fresh wave of tears as his parent looked at him with pride. “I can’t find Mother,” He said, watching closely for how his father would respond.

A flash of pain was there and gone in a blink as Li pat his son on the back and forced a smile. “I’ll find her,” He said as the radio at his hip began to crackle.

“Li, it’s Armaggeddon out here with all the twisters touching down. Did you find your family and get them to safety? We really need you back here,” Said a staticky voice.

Grabbing the device, he spoke into the receiver. “I found Li, but I need to look for An. They got separated.”

There was a pregnant pause before the radio buzzed again. “Just make it snappy, Li. It’s real bad,” The voice stated gravely before the line went dead.

Li took a deep breath and looked at his son. “I have to go find Mother. Be a good boy and wait for me here. Help anyone that needs you if you can, but don’t do anything too dangerous.”

Ren nodded and hugged his father tightly. He didn’t know it, but that would be the last time he ever saw Li Ren. The memory of those last precious moments would haunt him into adulthood.

As he watched his father’s retreating back, a small gasping sound echoed from within a heap nearby. It took Ren a moment to realize the sound was crying. He sprang into action, running over to the pile and pulling at bits of broken furniture. “Hello? I’m going to help you!” He called to whoever was trapped.

By the time he got to the small body under the debris, he was soaked with sweat and his muscles here aching. He looked at the girl who appeared around his age, curled onto her side with small cuts and bruises coloring her pale skin. When he extended a hand to her, she shrank back.

“Don’t be afraid. I want to help,” He told her. She eyed him warily with watery blue eyes, but eventually put her hand in his and let him lift her to her feet. “Can you walk?” He asked, looking over her small frame. She looked too thin, her skin sallow and her cheeks sunken. Her copper-colored hair was stringy and greasy. Ren had been too young to understand the significance of those details at the time.

The little girl took a few feeble steps with his support and nodded shyly. “Thank you,” She whispered.

“My name is Lie Ren. What’s your name?”

“Nora.”

Ren held her hand and squeezed it gently. “Don’t worry. I’ll be here with you, Nora.”

“You won’t leave me?” She asked, her bottom lip quivering as she tried not to start crying again.

“I promise, I’ll stay by your side.”

He hadn’t meant the words to mean ‘forever’ in that moment, just until everything was back to normal. But nothing ever went back to normal. Rescue workers found them holding each other later that night, and informed them that life as they’d known it was over.

Kuroyuri, their hometown, had been ravaged by a tornado cluster that had left a staggering death toll. The community was in shambles and the government response had been lackluster with relief efforts. It became a ghost town not long after the storms had blown away.

As both of their worlds shattered, they stayed together. They built each other back up and found a new normal together. Once the government decided what to do with them, they were sent to an orphanage in the next town over.

Whenever the sirens sounded, Ren would hug Nora as she covered her ears and cried. When he had nightmares, she crawled into his bed with him and told him silly stories to distract and cheer him. They were each other’s everything and the counselors in charge of their case decided against separating them out of concern for their emotional wellbeing.

They grew up together and somewhere along the line an unspoken promise was made; They would stay by each other’s sides forever.

A promise Nora had broken on the day they’d been set to graduate high school.

____________________________________________________________________________

Jaune swiped a hand through his hair and looked unsure. “Wow, man, that’s… a lot. I don’t think you’ve ever spoken that many words,” He joked, but it fell flat.

“When I saw Nora again with you… I didn’t know what to think or do. I still don’t. I have so many questions and I’m angry, so angry at her. But at the same time, I’m glad she’s okay.”

He didn’t need to say that he’d thought she was dead some days, or other equally dark imaginings. Walking back to the kitchenette, he picked up his tea and took a sip of the hot brew.

“You’ve got every right to be angry, but Nora doesn’t seem like the type to bail without a good reason. I’m sure if you guys acquaint yourselves with each other again, she’ll open up. You just have to be patient and understanding,” Jaune told him sagely.

Ren nodded and continued to sip his tea. The long confession had wrung him out and he felt raw and awkward. He had never been one for talking, and doing so much of it about things he’d packed away for so long felt like ripping open a scabbed wound and pouring salt in.

“Did you love her?” The blond asked, truly wondering. Ren had called her ‘family’ and said they were close, but Jaune could see something under the surface.

Ren just sipped his tea.

____________________________________________________________________________

“You look fine,” Pyrrha assured Nora for the thirtieth time.

“Are you sure? It doesn’t look like I’m trying too hard? Or that I’m not trying hard enough? Or that I tried to try to not look like I tried?”

“I’m sure that you’re going to drive yourself crazy if you try on another outfit.”

Nora sighed and looked at herself in the mirror. She wore an oversized baby pink sweater dress over jean leggings and her pink and white sneaker boots. Her ginger hair was braided up on either side of her head and her makeup was flattering without being overpowering. She turned around and opened her mouth to ask a question, but her roommate cut her off.

“If you ask me if that dress makes your behind look large, I’m going to leave,” She warned.

Nora closed her mouth so fast her teeth clicked.

Pyrrha sighed and stood up from Nora’s bed, walking over to loop an arm in hers. “It’s going to be fine. Ren is a good person and a gentleman. From what Jaune has said, you’re really important to him.”

Earlier in the week, Nora had replied to Ren’s invitation in the affirmative. After the initial invite, communication between them had been sparse. In their limited exchanges, it had been decided that they would meet at the zoo and then get dinner at Ren’s bar before his shift.

Oddly pensive, Nora only nodded and adjusted her bangs. She grabbed her purse, a cute little mini that was shaped like a stormcloud with beaded ‘raindrops’, and unzipped it.

“Keys?”

“Check.”

“Wallet?”

“Check.”

“Phone?”

“Check.”

“I think you’re good to go, then,” Pyrrha told her.

Nora enveloped her in a bear hug before letting go and smiling up at her tall friend. “Let’s get this over with?”

Pyrrha smiled back. “Let’s get this show on the road.”

____________________________________________________________________________

Ren looked at his watch as he waited at the gates to the Beacon Zoo. He still had ten minutes before Nora was officially expected to arrive, but he had always been punctual. Dressed in a Mandarin-collared emerald shirt, black hoodie, and khaki jeans that he’d agonized over choosing, he looked casual but put-together. His long black hair was pulled back into a low ponytail with his bangs falling into his eyes, making him wonder if he should’ve gotten a trim before the date.

“Ren!” A feminine voice called, and Ren was stricken again by the hit of nostalgia that filled him when he watched Nora jog over to him while waving. She halted just short of colliding with him and hesitated. He realized that in the past she would’ve just transitioned into a hug instead of stopping and he felt a twinge of regret that she’d altered their routine.

He pulled her into a gentle hug, resting his chin on her head and absorbing her warmth as she haltingly wrapped her arms around him. “Hi,” She greeted, her words slightly muffled by his shirt.

“Hi,” He replied as he let go of her. It was the closest thing he’d had to intimacy in a while and he was reluctant to give it up. Still, he realised enough time had passed that they needed to redefine their boundaries.

She was blushing brightly and unable to meet his eyes and he smiled as his heart melted at the sight. She was still beautiful, possibly more than she had ever been now that she’d grown into her features. He wondered what she thought of how he looked for a moment before shaking the thought away.

“Are you ready?” He inquired, smiling softly.

She looked up at him, a pregnant pause unfolding in the silence as she gazed into his violet eyes. “Yeah,” She finally told him, a warm grin spreading on her lips before she looped her arm in his and yanked him into the zoo. He stumbled a bit before he caught himself and matched her pace.

____________________________________________________________________________

Jaune watched the cringey greeting and winced in sympathy for Ren. It appeared he had his work cut out for him. That was why Jaune was there, to play invisible wingman to his best bro and make sure things went smoothly.

He wore a tan trench coat, sunglasses, and a fedora, as a disguise uniform. He’d gotten the idea from classic Film Noir, and carried a newspaper to hide behind as part of his cover. It might have helped him to have buttoned the coat so that the iconic Pumpkin Pete decal on his hoodie wasn’t showing, but he hadn’t thought of that detail.

Skulking behind the duo as they walked into the zoo, he watched them as they casually spoke of mundane and safe topics like the weather. They passed the gift shop and the restaurant, going into the main exhibits section and stopping at the first enclosure.

While they discussed the creatures within, Jaune moved closer so that he could hear better, but nearly fell over when he knocked into someone.

“Oh, sorry!” Said the person as they turned to help him up and Jaune looked up in shock as he recognized the face.

“Pyrrha?!” He yelped, quickly slapping a hand over his mouth to try and muffle the outburst.

Pyrrha Nikos stood over him, also wearing a trench coat, sunglasses, and a scarf wrapped around her hair. She looked like an old school movie star and he was temporarily dazed by the sight.

“Jaune?” She asked as she helped him to his feet and dusted him off. “What are you doing here?”

“Being a good wingman?”

“Right,” She said with suspicion.

“No, it’s true! I want to make sure everything goes well for them, so I’m undercover on a mission to play Cupid.”

Slowly, Pyrrha nodded and smiled. “Me too,” She confessed.

“What? Really?”

A blush colored her cheeks and she sighed. “Nora was nervous and I wanted to make sure everything went okay for her. I’m not really sure what I can do, but I still wanted to be here for her if she needed me.”

“Let’s team up then!” Jaune spouted the idea before bothering to give it any thought, but once it was out of his mouth, he realized that it had merit.

“Team up?”

“Yeah, we can work together to make sure those two have the best reunion date ever!” He enthused.

“I’m not sure we should meddle.” Pyrrha hedged, though her heart skipped at the idea of spending time with Jaune.

“Pyrrha, we’re already meddling just by being here.”

“I suppose you’re right, but we’ll only intervene if there’s no other option.”

“Fair enough,” Jaune agreed, taking her hand and shaking it to affirm their deal. Her hand lingered in his as she looked at him with slightly dazed eyes. “Uh… Are you ready?” He asked after an awkward pause.

Pyrrha cleared her throat and pulled away, tucking her hands into her pockets. “Yeah, of course. Let’s do this.”

“Great… Now which way did they go?” Jaune asked as he looked up to find their quarry nowhere in sight.

____________________________________________________________________________

Ren lead Nora from the first enclosure the moment he heard Jaune’s voice. Nora had joked, back when things were good between them, that Ren was a ninja that could sense things better than others. Slightly racist stereotyping aside, it was true that he was far more perceptive than average. In this scenario, it was working in his favor.

He appreciated that his friend was there almost as much as he was annoyed by it. He was a grown man! He could handle his business. Sure, Nora threw him for a loop every time she smiled at him, but he could deal with it.

She bounced excitedly next to him as she watched a penguin swim by, cooing at it as if it could hear. She looked up at him with a glint in her eye. “How big of a distraction do you think you could cause while I swipe a penguin?” She asked, her demeanor entirely serious.

“Nora, I’m not letting you commit grand theft… Penguin,” He said with an exasperated smile.

“But Ren… Pet penguin!” She pleaded.

“I’ll get you a stuffed one at the gift shop,” He told her, feeling like an indulgent sibling.

“Really?!” She asked, eyes wide.

He was fairly certain he would’ve gotten her anything she would’ve wanted in that moment, but that knowledge would be dangerous for Nora to possess, so instead, he shrugged and said, “It’s for the greater good.”

Her smile was blinding in its radiance and his heart stuttered in his chest. It was the first time in years he’d ever even felt the organ move, as if it had stopped when she was gone from his life. Now his heart was back, his missing piece, and he vowed to never let her go.

____________________________________________________________________________

They spent the greater part of the morning walking around the zoo, stopping to see each enclosure and talking about the animals within. They had thought provoking discussions about how the ‘Alpha Wolf’ wasn’t an accurate depiction. They had silly discussions on if elephants would look different if they were evil.

They did not, however, have personal discussions.

Nora was grateful for it, but she knew Ren was curious and she was too. She had a lot of questions and concerns, but wasn’t sure how to broach them without opening Pandora’s box. So she followed his lead and stuck to inane chatter while trying to hyper-analyse every move he made and word he said. Each blink had to carry some hidden meaning. Every breath was a mystery to decipher. She was stressing herself out and the whole process was exhausting.

When they reached the aviary, Ren seemed to notice her energy was flagging, and suggested they sit down on a nearby bench.

She was grateful as she settled onto the wooden seat, careful not to sit in any bird droppings. Still, her mind was racing and she was not a great driver.

A few birds had noticed them and flew over to hover just at the edge of the pair’s reach, likely hopeful to be rewarded with food or treats. More continued to show up as they rested, until it seemed like the whole menagerie was clustered around them.

“So…” Ren started, making Nora’s heart stop, “How have you been?”

And with those simple words, she knew the box had been opened. Not far, but enough.

“Good,” She answered quietly, trying to avoid the bait.

He nodded. “That’s… Good.”

It was agony, torture of the highest level, but she had to soldier on. She could do it. This was Ren, love of her life and the reason for so many actions she had taken. She’d fallen on her sword for him before, and she could damn well do it again.

“How have you been?” She asked meekly.

He looked at her, really looked, and she felt like he could see her panic. It was as if he knew her soul as his violet eyes bored into her.

“Do you really want to know?” He asked, offering the out she so desperately wanted.

But she could also see him, see that he wanted to talk and how he needed at least a few answers. The strained distance between them was hurting them both and she knew he wanted things to be the way they used to just as much as her. She had to be vulnerable and honest, but if there was anyone in the world she could be those things with, it was Ren.

“Tell me,” She prompted, not even realizing she’d spoken until the words were out.

“I wasn’t okay for a long while,” He admitted, his hands clasping in front of him to keep from fidgeting. “But then I started school and discovered my major. Jaune wound up being my roommate in the dorms and he quickly became a good friend.”

“You’re studying psychology, right?” She asked, her interest completely genuine.

He looked at the ground, self-conscious about his answer. “After you left, I started seeing a therapist. He helped me work through a lot and while I was seeing him I realized I wanted to help others the same way. I know our foster parents wanted me to become a doctor, but emotional health is just as important as physical.”

Nora hid her reaction to the mention of their foster parents by looking up at a cackling parrot. “You’ve always been good with feelings and stuff. I’m glad you had people looking out for you.”

“Did you?” He asked, true worry tinging his tone.

“Not at first,” She confessed and winced at the grimace on his face. “But I met Pyrrha and her family pretty quickly and they took me in. I’ve had a few jobs here and there and I did what I needed to get by, but no school.”

“Nora, I’m trying to respect your privacy, but I have to ask… Why did you leave?”

Tears welled in her eyes and she looked away, swallowing a thick lump in her throat. “Please don’t ask me that,” She pleaded.

He took hold of her hands in his, a gentle and intimate interaction that she used to initiate back when they were younger. “Nora…”

She stood up abruptly, ripping her hands from his. She was crying openly, messy tears falling down her face. “Don’t ask me, Ren!” She whimpered, hiding her pain behind anger.

He stood as well, trying to reach for her, terrified she’d keep pulling away.

“POCKET BIRDSEED!!!” Someone shouted, as a rain of corn kernels and sunflowers seeds showered over them, distracting from their row. Before they even had time to register what had happened, the hungry flock of birds swarmed them in eager pursuit of food.

In the chaos, Ren grabbed Nora’s wrist and pulled her from within the feathery mass, running with her to the aviary doors and slamming the door shut before any of the feathered beasts could follow.

Nora’s eyes were still watery but she was smiling. “What the heck just happened?!” She asked in disbelief.

Ren leaned against the wall, catching his breath. He was still gripping Nora’s wrist, but let go once he was sure they were out of danger. He had an inkling as to what had happened, and while he was still annoyed at his best friend for interfering, he was also grateful for the save from the near-fight that had almost erupted.

____________________________________________________________________________

“I can’t believe you threw birdseed at them!” Pyrrha exclaimed, peeking at the entryway from a bush to be sure Ren and Nora were unharmed.

“I panicked!” Jaune stated defensively. “She was about to bolt, and he was pushing too hard. We had to do something!”

“I don’t disagree, but birdseed?”

“It worked, right?”

She saw their friends laughing together in the entrance, Nora wiping her tears away from her cheeks with the back of her hand. 

She had to admit that Jaune had a point.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I totally forgot to thank my friends who helped me do this! I'm the worst and I'm sorry. To Blue, thank you for being an incredible Beta Reader. To Bev, you are an awesome editor and the fact you do it for free is just icing on the cake. To Kep, thank you for editing as well and I hope things improve for you soon.
> 
> Anyway, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. It was a little shorter, but I put in angst so I figured my readers would forgive me. There's still much more to the mystery of Ren and Nora's past to look forward to learning. I want to see if anyone has any wild guesses. If you do, be sure to comment them!
> 
> I love you all and thank you for the support!


	3. Mweh

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ren and Nora finish their day together.

After their re-enactment of Alfred Hitchcock’s “The Birds”, Ren and Nora fell into a silent truce. The emotions were still there, beneath the surface, but went unacknowledged. Those were feelings for future Ren and Nora to deal with.

Nora saw him look at his watch and she wondered if he was planning to make an excuse to end the date. Her heart sank. Sure, things hadn’t gone according to plan, but it was still salvageable in her mind.

He looked up at her with a shy smile and her heart skipped a beat.

“Nora,” He said, looking earnest and eager. “I set us up for an animal encounter I think you’ll be excited for.”

The breath left her in her rush of excitement. “Are you SERIOUS!?” She cried, jumping up and down and throwing out her arms.

“Ren! You didn’t have to!” She began to argue with herself. “I’m totally glad you did, obviously, but that’s so nice of you! Then again, you’ve always been nice. I’m gonna have to repay you for this! But how can I possibly repay you?! What if I get you the wrong thing and you hate me? What if you stop talking to me and ghost all my calls and texts?! We’ll never see each other again and you’ll curse my name and never make me pancakes again and-.”

“Nora! You’re spiraling,” Ren told her calmly, used to her blathering heading off into fantastical tangents in the past.

She came back to herself and blushed softly. “Sorry, Ren.”

“You don’t need to repay me, I did this because I wanted to.”

She moved to argue and he held up a placating palm. “But if you do repay me, I’m sure whatever you do will be… Sufficient.”

She smiled and nodded in gratitude.

He extended a hand to her, like a prince from a fairytale, and Nora nearly swooned as she placed her hand in his and let him pull her in the direction they needed to go. He quickly let go, but those few moments of contact had been blissful.

“So, what animal are we seeing up close and personal?” She asked, unable to stay silent in the face of her overwhelming curiosity.

“You’ll see…” Ren teased, almost looking smug.

She made a sound of protest and rolled her eyes. “Oh, come on. You have to give me time to freak out over what we’re seeing before we see it or I might freak out what we’re seeing!”

He chuckled.

Her arms crossed over her chest and she leaned into his personal space, trying to gauge his expression. “What are you hiding from me, Lie Ren?”

He turned to look directly into her eyes. A frisson of awareness bolted through Nora’s veins, but she remained outwardly unaffected. “I’m not hiding anything, Nora Valkyrie. You’re free to guess,” Ren told her, his tone playful but his eyes daring her.

“Panda,” She guessed.

“No,” He replied.

“Tiger.”

“No.”

“Hippo.”

“What?” He asked, stumbling a step as he processed what she said. “No, those are dangerous!”

“More dangerous than tigers and pandas?” She asked incredulously.

“I’m fairly certain that what we are going to see isn’t dangerous,” He hinted, though he was enjoying her wild guesses.

And so they made their way through the zoo, Nora taking stranger and stranger guesses as Ren refused to reveal their destination. They arrived at a squat stucco building with jungle leaves painted on the glass doors and Nora’s interest was piqued.

“A jungle animal?”

“Rainforest, but almost the same thing, I suppose.”

She stopped at the doors, blocking traffic until Ren steered her to the side of the entry walkway. Her eyes were wide and she looked on the verge of screaming or throwing up. “Are you okay?” Ren asked, suddenly worried.

Her voice was deceptively calm as she robotically turned her head to look at him. “Are we about to have an encounter with sloths?” She asked.

Having known she would figure it out before they arrived, Ren nodded. He then quickly covered his ears as a shrill scream of manic delight tore from Nora’s voicebox. She jumped onto him, wrapping her arms tight around his shoulders and bouncing up and down, jostling him roughly in her excited state.

“Nora, we need to get going if we want to be there on time,” Ren reminded her, trying not to bite his tongue.

She froze, pulled back, and shook him a little. “Why didn’t you say so sooner?! Let’s go!” She commanded, linking her arm in his and speeding through the doors into the darkened exhibit space. He was only able to retake the lead once Nora realized she didn’t know where they were going.

____________________________________________________________________________

If the zookeeper was at all unnerved by Nora’s enthusiasm as she spoke through the basic rules and etiquette of sloth encounters, she didn’t show it. Instead, she smiled encouragingly at her, probably as charmed as Ren was by her verve.

“So, now I’m gonna go get little Grimm and bring him out for you. We’re gonna let him chill on this branch and see how he’s feeling. If he seems to be okay with it, you may just get to hold him,” The zookeeper explained.

Ren had to physically lock an arm around Nora’s shoulder to keep her from rocketing through the ceiling in her excitement. The touch seemed to bring her back to Earth and she turned her head to look at him, beaming so brightly Ren worried he’d go blind.

“Thankyousomuch!” She blurted, hyperactivity melting her words into a single utterance.

He chuckled and shrugged as he pulled away. “It’s really not such a big deal,” He tried to explain humbly.

She looked like she was about to argue but the keeper came out with a brown bundle of lazy cuteness that distracted her. In fact, it stole the entirety of her attention. Nothing existed in that moment for Nora that wasn’t the sloth.

The creature reached out and pulled itself onto the branch, letting out a small sound of a complaint before being handed a grape that it chewed with the unhurried manner of a cow. Nora was completely entranced, her hands curled into fists as if to keep them from reaching out.

“Do you want to pet him?” The zookeeper asked with a grin.

“OhmyGodyesplease!” Nora replied with all the speed the sloth seemed lacking. She gingerly walked over to the branch, eying the sloth with undisguised awe as her hand reached out to stroke the side of the hairy beast.

Ren busied himself taking pictures as Nora lived her best life and crossed off an item on her bucket list. He smiled to himself, feeling a rush of pride and joy for having done something to make his friend so happy.

She was incandescent in her delight, beautiful and oddly bashful as she lived out a dream she’d told him about when they were younger. He caught up to his thoughts and shook his head to clear the fog.

“So Grimm seems to be in a great mood. I think he likes you. You wanna hold him?”

Nora looked like she was about to faint, but she nodded vigorously as the handler unhooked the sloth from his branch and held him so that he was in a hugging position. His back legs rested on Nora’s hips and his long arms went around her neck.

“Give him a grape. He loves grapes,” The keeper told her, handing over a fruit that Nora gently gave to Grimm.

“I love him,” Nora cooed, her eyes wide and round with wonder.

After about ten minutes of hanging onto his biggest fan, Grimm started to get antsy and the handler collected him. “Okay, I think this one’s ready for a nap. Say goodnight,” She prompted.

“Goodnight,” Nora parroted obediently.

As the keeper took the sloth back to its enclosure, Ren walked over to Nora to check on her. “You okay?” He asked, noting her stillness.

She turned to him and wrapped him in an embrace that took him by surprise. Normally Nora gave energetic bear hugs. This was something far more intimate. She moved slowly as she wrapped her arms around his neck and tucked her face against his shoulder. She squeezed him and he thought he felt her shaking.

“Thank you, Ren.”

He moved to return the hug, but she was already stepping back to give him space. Her eyes were watery, but she was smiling at him. “This was so thoughtful and sweet and amazing and I don’t think I’ll ever stop thanking you now,” She told him as she chuckled and wiped her eyes.

Ren was used to vibrant and vivacious Nora. The woman in front of him was a new facet of someone he thought he knew everything about. She looked surprisingly vulnerable and his heart cartwheeled in his chest at the sight of her so unguarded.

She’d never been one to let herself show how deeply she truly felt things. Nora used her humor or her anger to mask just how intense her emotions could be. Knowing she was exposing her soft underbelly to him, even for just a moment, was humbling.

Realizing his scrutiny, Nora seemed to come back into herself. He watched as her walls built themselves back up and she smiled at him as she tapped the end of his nose.

“Boop!” She sang as she did it.

She acted like things were back to normal, but after seeing Nora in her truest state, Ren knew they’d never be normal again.

Not until he knew what happened. Not until the truth was out. Not until he could forgive her.

____________________________________________________________________________

After the sloth encounter, the duo had left the zoo and grabbed a cab to take them to their next destination. They were back to being quiet, but the silence was companionable instead of awkward.

Nora couldn’t stop herself from looking over at Ren every few minutes and grinning at him when he caught her. He would offer a more subdued smile in return then look away, only to catch her again and repeat the process.

Their driver dropped them off at the curb outside of a trendy Asian fusion bistro and Ren paid the fare after declining Nora’s offer to.

They walked into the restaurant side by side and were quickly seated in a private corner with low lighting and soft shamisen music playing overhead on the hidden speaker system. The menus were white cardstock on black leather and Nora gulped as she realized dinner wasn’t going to be cheap.

Ren ordered a kettle of green tea as she fretted over dinner prices and wondered if ordering an appetizer as a meal would be an obvious indicator of her shallow purse. She had to put the menu down for a moment to gather her thoughts.

“So, this is a nice place. How’d you find it?” She asked.

“One of our second shift servers at the bar works here as their other job. They said the food was good and the tea was brewed traditionally,” Ren explained as he also set down his menu.

“Still a connoisseur of tea, huh?”

“It’s both healthy and flavorful,” He replied, slightly defensive.

Nora chuckled and waved her hand in a carefree gesture. “Yeah, I’ve heard it all before.”

“Do you want to order something else?”

“No. Tea is fine, I’m just teasing you,” Nora told him with a cheeky grin.

Ren rolled his eyes but smiled. “What are you ordering?”

“Oh… The Thai-style spring rolls look good.”

“There’s only three to a plate. Are you not hungry?”

Her stomach growled before she could lie and she blushed as she slapped her hands over it to stifle the gurgle.

“Nora…” Ren said, his tone chastising.

She pouted before squaring her shoulders. “Okay, don’t be weird about this but I’m kind of broke so I can’t order much. I just lost my job,” She confessed.

He blinked a few times in shock as a frown curled his lips downward. “Nora, you probably should’ve mentioned that. I’m fine with paying for everything. I inherited my trust fund my parents left to me. I’m only working because I can’t stand to be idle. Do you need money?”

“No!” Nora groaned, pinching the bridge of her nose. “It’s really not a big deal. I don’t want you to feel like you have to pay for me. Usually I’m just fine taking care of myself. Things are just tight right now.”

He looked ready to say more but she shot a glare his way that had him holding his tongue. “How about you just pay for tonight and I’ll pay you back for dinner and part of the cab fare after I get back on my feet?”

“That’s fine, but you really don’t have to-”

Another frosty glare had him eating his words. “Or maybe you do. That’s fine as well.”

She looked for a subject change and fixated on something he’d mentioned. “So you inherited? That’s good. Do you still have a say in your mom’s company?”

Ren looked at the table and picked up the chopsticks as if inspecting them. “Occasionally I’ll be consulted on decisions when the board feels inclined to hear my opinion. There’s a seat available to me if I decide to change my degree, but I don’t think I want to take it.”

“I can see it. You’d be sitting behind a sleek desk with a phone to your ear and a calculator in your hand. There’d be a matronly secretary to bring you tea and all the girls on the sales floor would be crazy about you.” She didn’t add how incredibly attractive she found the imaginary version of him to be. Ren in glasses. Yum.

“Really?”

Nora shrugged. “You’ve got a business-like manner. I don’t actually think you could sit by yourself in an office all day, though. You need interaction and activity or you get restless.”

He looked amused by her observation. “The same could be said for you,” He replied.

“Don’t I know it! But I haven’t really found the right fit for me yet. Mostly I just apply for what’s available and keep my fingers crossed.”

“You got your G.E.D.?”

“I did. No college, though. Couldn’t afford school on top of trying to scrape by. Pyrrha’s been a godsend by being the ultimate roommate and neighbor. Her dad is a realtor, so we pay pennies on the dollar for rent and utilities but our apartment is fairly swanky. She likes to cook, so I just help pay for groceries instead of buying takeout every night.”

Ren was fascinated and impressed. Nora was obviously trying to look on the bright side of things but he could tell it wasn’t all rainbows. Without meaning to, he said, “I like to cook too. Maybe you could come by my place and eat?”

She looked as surprised by the offer as he felt for making it. “Really?”

He warmed to the idea. “Yeah. We still have a lot of catching up to do and I tend to make more than I can eat. Really, you’d be doing me a favor.” It was a little white lie. Ren was exact in his measurements and portion sizes. Everything ended up used and he rarely had leftovers.

“Oh… Well I guess that’d be okay.”

Their waiter arrived and took their orders before returning with the tea kettle and glassware. Ren poured her a cup before making his own and Nora giggled.

“What?”

“Nothing. It’s just, you’ve always done that. Y’know, made me my tea before you fixed yours. It’s nice and familiar. Good to see you haven’t changed so much I don’t know you anymore.”

“You still act very similar as well,” He told her.

They smiled at each other while sipping their tea, an easy and comfortable rapport building between them. As they waited for their food, they spoke about their day at the zoo. It was the same kind of easy banter they’d had years before.

“I was right, by the way,” Nora stated abruptly.

“About?”

“Sloths do make sounds! You heard l’il Grimm. He was all like ‘Mweh!’ when he wanted grapes,” She told him, doing an excellent sloth impression. “When we were ten I remember you telling me they don’t make sounds.”

“I told you I didn’t know if they made sounds,” He corrected.

“Well they do, and it’s adorable.”

He looked at her with a strange warmth in his eyes she wasn’t familiar with. It made her feel flustered and a little dizzy. Their food arrived and served as an excellent diversion.

“Curry?” She guessed as she looked at his plate.

He nodded and scooped up a forkful to offer her. Without thinking about the implications, she leaned forward and took the bite off of the end of the utensil, essentially making it so that he was feeding her. Her eyes caught his and he covered his mouth with his free hand and looked away.

It was the kind of move she’d done before when they ate together. She’d just acted on instinct and familiarity. But his response had her aware that things had changed.

Suddenly bashful, she returned to her seat and collected a bit of her own Pad Thai, swirling the noodles to wrap around her fork. She held it up to him, mimicking the way he’d done it, and he seemed lost in an internal debate.

Finally, he reached up and took the whole fork, using it to put the bite in his mouth then handing it back to her. “It’s good,” He told her.

“Yours is too. Spicy but not too hot,” She babbled, not really paying attention to what she was saying. Before she could continue to mutter, she cut herself off with a long sip of tea.

“It’s a little awkward after not seeing each other for so long,” Ren stated, broaching the subject of the elephant in the room.

Instead of being worried, Nora was just relieved that they were going past her hiccup. “Yeah, it really is. Sorry.”

“I’m sorry too, if I’ve done anything to make you uncomfortable,” He told her sincerely. He meant it. Trying to force information out of her had been the wrong approach and she could tell he felt like a cad.

“Nothing that’s been more uncomfortable than the birdseed in my bra,” She joked, making Ren choke on his tea.

She laughed at his reaction and he joined her in it once he was able to swallow. From there they eased back into cozy camaraderie for the remainder of their meal.

____________________________________________________________________________

After dinner, they walked around the city park and talked about their shared childhood. It felt good to have her near again, like something missing had settled back into place in his life. She was still Nora, but with new and intriguing secrets that beckoned him to uncover them like a siren song.

Remembering all the good times from their youth was a balm to his soul after years of shoving the memories down deep to avoid the pain. Remembering them with Nora somehow eased the burden of unpacking them.

From the way she reminisced, he could tell she hadn’t been dwelling on the past much either.

They got back to the entrance of the park and Ren hailed a cab, opening the door for her before climbing in after.

“Such a gentleman,” She joked, but he took it as high praise.

When they reached her apartment, she turned to tell him goodbye. “Well, this is me…”

“I’ll walk you up,” He told her, his tone garnering no room for refusal.

She smiled as she rolled her eyes. “I can take care of myself, y’know.”

“I know, but as a gentleman I must live up to the standards presented to me,” He told her in a formal decree.

Shrugging, she let him go around and open her door, then walked with him up to her apartment. They hesitated on the threshold, neither knowing exactly what to do.

“So. Today was fun. Thank you again. Sloths, y’know? Love ‘em,” Nora rambled as she fished her keys out of her pocket.

Ren watched her with intense concentration. What did Nora think today had been? An outing between friends? A date? Had it been a date? Was he expected to kiss her? Panic swelled and he cleared his throat. “Goodnight, Nora,” He bid her, turning to leave. “I’ll call you tomorrow.”

Was it just him or did she look disappointed?

“Yeah, okay. Night, Ren!” She chirped, watching him go.

He got to the end of the hall and around the corner, but paused to listen for her to open the door. There was the jangle of keys and then a whoosh as he guessed the door was swung open quickly.

“Pyrrha?!” Nora asked in surprise. “Were you listening at the door?”

“No time for questions, tell me everything,” Pyrrha demanded.

“Only if you got me ice cream.”

“A whole pint. Now spill,” Her roommate said, bringing a smile to Ren’s face.

He felt a swell of relief that Nora had such a good friend. As he started down the stairs, his phone dinged with a text message. Ren pulled it up as he walked and saw it was from Jaune.

“Dude, how was the date?”

He hesitated on the steps, trying to think of an appropriate reply before typing out, “It wasn’t a date. And it was perfect.”

Little did he know, Nora was telling Pyrrha the exact same thing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Big thanks to Blue for beta reading and Bev for editing. You two are amazing and I love you. Sorry this chapter took so long to get out: Quarantine has been rough. So, how am I doing? What do you think is going to happen next?

**Author's Note:**

> So, I've had this particular plot bunny hopping around in my brain for a while. I hope you all feel like I've done the characters justice. I'm kind of pantsing this whole thing, but I do have a direction I want to go. Feel free to throw any ideas you might get my way and don't forget to kudos, comment, and bookmark! Thank you for reading! BOOP!


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